May 1972-January 1973 Trial of the Watergate Burglars
May 28, 1972
Operatives working for the Committee to Re-elect the President (CRP) burglarize the Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Washington, DC Watergate office complex. June 17, 1972
The burglars return to the Watergate, and five are arrested at 2:30 a.m. inside the DNC headquarters. June 19, 1972
The Washington Post reports one of the burglars is the security director for the Committee to Re-elect the President (CRP). John Mitchell, former Attorney General and head of CRP, denies any knowledge. August 1, 1972
The Washington Post reports a check for $25,000 was deposited in the account of one of the burglars. This check was linked to the CRP. In the White House, Nixon tells Haldeman, “…whoever made the decision (to break in) was about as stupid as I ever heard." August 30, 1972
Nixon announces that White House counsel John Dean has investigated the matter and found no one in the White House was involved. August 31, 1972
According to a survey, 57% of the respondents have heard about the Watergate break-in. Forty-three percent have not. The majority believe it is “just more politics” rather than “something serious.” September 15, 1972
The five Watergate burglars are indicted, along with E. Howard Hunt and G. Gordon Liddy. Dean sums up the indictment for the president and Haldeman. “The two former White House people, low level, indicted, one consultant and one member of the Domestic Council staff. That’s not very much of a tie.” September 29, 1972
The Post reports that, while Attorney General, John Mitchell controlled a covert slush fund used to underwrite activities against Democrats. October 10, 1972
The Post reports that the FBI has linked the Watergate break-in to the CRP and its broad activities of political spying and sabotage. November 11, 1972
Nixon is re-elected in a historic landslide, defeating McGovern by more than 20 percentage points and taking every electoral vote except those of Massachusetts and the District of Columbia. January 8, 1973
Judge Sirica begins the trial of the Watergate burglars. January 11, 1973
E. Howard Hunt pleads guilty to six counts, stating no “higher-ups” are involved in any conspiracy. January 15, 1973
The four Cubans, Barker, Gonzalez, Martinez and Sturgis plead guilty. January 30, 1973
James McCord and G. Gordon Liddy are convicted on eight counts, both having pled innocent. Echoing the sentiments of a shocked, disbelieving president, aide Charles Colson tells Nixon that Judge Sirica is “a hot-headed Italian… [who] has handled himself terribly.”
Senate Hearings, Jan 1973 - July 1973
February 7, 1973
Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities is established. Senator Sam Ervin (D-NC) is its chairman. March 21, 1973
John Dean tells President Nixon, “We have a cancer – within – close to the Presidency, that’s growing.” He tells the president that the burglars are demanding money and that maybe one million dollars would be needed in the end. “We could get that…,” the president replies. March 23, 1973
Prior to Judge John Sirica imposing sentences on the convicted burglars, James McCord writes a letter to the judge claiming pressure had been applied to the defendants to ensure silence. Perjury was committed in the courtroom. Sirica makes the letter public and imposes harsh sentences, ranging from twenty to forty years, to force the defendants’ cooperation. April 6, 1973
John Dean begins cooperating with Watergate prosecutors. April 17, 1973
White House staff will appear before the Senate committee, says Nixon, who promises major new developments. An official White House statement claims Nixon had no prior knowledge of the break-in. April 22, 1973
Nixon sends Dean to Camp David to write a report about Watergate. April 30, 1973
Appearing on national television, Nixon announces the dismissal of Dean and the resignations of his closest advisors, Haldeman and Ehrlichman. Attorney General Kleindienst also resigns. Elliot Richardson is appointed to replace him. May 3, 1973
According to a Louis Harris poll following the resignations of his key assistants, 54% believes the president’s credibility has suffered, rendering him less effective, yet only 42% agree that he “does not inspire confidence personally….” A strong majority believe “his own office was deeply involved in the Watergate affair,” and almost as many (51%) believe his action “has gone a long way toward restoring public confidence in the integrity of the White House.” Most are willing to give the president the benefit of the doubt, believing that Democrats as well as Republicans engage in dirty politics. May 4, 1973
President Nixon appoints General Alexander Haig to replace Haldeman as White House chief of staff. May 18, 1973
Having begun its work a day earlier, the Senate Watergate committee now begins televised hearings. Richardson announces former solicitor general Archibald Cox as the Justice Department’s special prosecutor. June 3, 1973
The Post reports that John Dean has told investigators that he discussed the cover-up with Nixon at least 35 times. June 13, 1973
Prosecutors find a memo to Ehrlichman containing detailed plans to burglarize the office of Dr. Lewis Fielding, Daniel Ellsberg’s psychiatrist. June 25, 1973
Dean testifies before the Senate Watergate committee claiming Nixon was involved in the cover-up soon after the break-in and that the White House had conducted political espionage for years. July 7, 1973
Claiming executive privilege, Nixon refuses to grant the Senate Watergate committee access to presidential documents. He informs Senator Ervin that he will not testify before the committee. July 16, 1973
Alexander Butterfield, a former aide to the president and one of the few who knew about Nixon's tape recorders, testifies before the Senate committee and says that “there is tape in the Oval Office.” In doing so, he supposed he was confirming what Haldeman had already told the committee. This sets off a legal battle between the White House, special prosecutor’s office, Judge Sirica, and the Watergate committee. July 18, 1973
Nixon orders an end to secret taping.
Constitutional Battle for the Tapes
July 22, 1973
A Louis Harris poll shows 44 percent of participants agreeing that Nixon should resign if it can be proven he ordered a cover-up, with 70 percent rating his handling of the matter as “only fair or poor.” An even 50 percent believe Dean’s charges against the president but split 38 percent to 37 percent over whom they would believe if Nixon denied those charges. July 23, 1973
The Watergate committee and special prosecutor Cox demand Nixon surrender certain tapes and documents. July 25, 1973
Nixon refuses to surrender the tapes, claiming executive privilege. July 26, 1973
The Senate committee subpoenas White House tapes. August 9, 1973
Nixon refuses to comply and the Senate committee takes legal action. August 15, 1973
Nixon addresses the nation for a second time concerning Watergate. He explains his claim of executive privilege and why the tapes should not be turned over to the committee. The special prosecutor and the Senate committee ask the Supreme Court to decide the issue. August 29, 1973
Nixon loses his first court battle when Judge Sirica orders him to hand over nine tapes for private review. October 10, 1973
Vice President Spiro Agnew resigns amidst allegations of bribery. October 12, 1973
Nixon nominates Congressman Gerald R. Ford (R-MI) as vice president. The Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia upholds Sirica’s order. October 19, 1973
Offering a compromise to the Senate Watergate Committee, Nixon proposes that Senator Stennis (D MS) prepare summaries of the subpoenaed tapes. October 20, 1973
Cox declines this compromise offered by the White House, and is asked by Nixon to resign. Cox refuses. Nixon orders Attorney General Elliot Richardson to fire Cox. Richardson refuses and resigns. Nixon orders Richardson 's assistant, William Ruckelshaus, to fire Cox. He, too, refuses and resigns. Nixon orders his solicitor general, Robert Bork, to fire Cox. Bork does so. The press dubs this extraordinary series of events the "Saturday Night Massacre." October 22, 1973
Many members of the House of Representatives begin drafting resolutions calling for the impeachment of the president. October 23, 1973
Feeling the heat, Nixon agrees to surrender some tapes. November 1, 1973
The Justice Department appoints Leon Jaworski its new special prosecutor. November 16, 1973
In a Louis Harris poll, 83 percent of respondents have a negative impression of how Nixon has handled the Watergate case. Fifty-nine percent believe he should resign if proven he knew about a cover-up of Watergate. Sixty-five percent agree he should be impeached if the tapes reveal his involvement in Watergate. November 17, 1973
At a press conference, Nixon urges the nation to move beyond Watergate and defends himself, arguing “I’m not a crook.” November 21, 1973
The White House reports that two of the subpoenaed tapes are missing and one contains an erased gap of 18 ½ minutes. Nixon’s secretary, Rose Mary Woods, cannot account for what experts conclude are multiple erasures covering that span. Suspicions surface that evidence is being destroyed.
Congressional Impeachment Proceedings and Aftermath
February 6, 1974
The House votes to authorize the Judiciary Committee to investigate grounds for impeaching the president. March 1, 1974
Seven of Nixon’s former staff are indicted by a grand jury for Watergate-related crimes. Nixon is named an “unindicted co-conspirator” by the grand jury. April 16, 1974
Jaworski subpoenas sixty-four additional tapes. April 20, 1974
Given what the public knows about Watergate, a Louis Harris poll reveals that 49% believe Nixon should not resign, yet 51% believe he “will be found to have violated the law….” Most believe the president is using executive privilege as an excuse to keep incriminating evidence from Congress. April 30, 1974
Nixon ignores the subpoena and instead provides edited transcripts, announcing his intention to release a total of 1,200 such pages. The House Judiciary Committee insists on hearing the tapes. The public is shocked by the language in the transcripts, its coarser adjectives masked by the repeated phrase “expletive deleted.” May 9, 1974
The House Judiciary Committee begins impeachment hearings. July 24, 1974 The United States v. Richard Nixon: The Supreme Court decides 8-0 that the president must surrender the subpoenaed tapes, denying his claim of executive privilege. July 27-30, 1974
The House Judiciary Committee adopts 3 articles of impeachment against the president: (Barbara Jordan's remarks were 25 July 1974)
Misuse of power and violating his oath of office (Voted 28-10 on Monday, 29 July 1974)
Failure to comply with House subpoenas (Voted 21-17 on Tuesday, 30 July 1974)
August 5, 1974
Nixon releases transcripts of three conversations between himself and Haldeman held on June 23, 1972, six days after the Watergate break-in. These transcripts become known as the “smoking gun.” They show that Nixon obstructed justice by ordering the FBI to stop its investigation of the break-in. Other transcripts show he directed a cover-up. Republicans on the Judiciary Committee who voted against impeachment announce they will change their vote. August 7, 1974
Senators Barry Goldwater and Hugh Scott and Representative John Rhodes meet with Nixon and advise him that his prospects on Capitol Hill regarding impeachment look “very bad.” August 8, 1974
President Nixon announces to the nation in a televised address that he will “resign the Presidency, effective at noon tomorrow.” August 9, 1974
Nixon delivers a farewell speech to his staff, assembled in the East Room of the White House and departs from the South Lawn by helicopter. At noon, Supreme Court Chief Justice Warren Burger swears in Vice President Ford as President in an East Room ceremony. August 19, 1974
A Gallup poll shows 56% of those surveyed believe Nixon “should be tried for possible criminal charges arising from Watergate.” September 8, 1974
In a surprise Sunday morning announcement, President Ford grants a “full free and absolute” pardon to Nixon for “all offenses against the United States” committed between January 20, 1969 and August 9, 1974.
May 1972-January 1973 Trial of the Watergate Burglars
May 28, 1972Operatives working for the Committee to Re-elect the President (CRP) burglarize the Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Washington, DC Watergate office complex.
June 17, 1972
The burglars return to the Watergate, and five are arrested at 2:30 a.m. inside the DNC headquarters.
June 19, 1972
The Washington Post reports one of the burglars is the security director for the Committee to Re-elect the President (CRP). John Mitchell, former Attorney General and head of CRP, denies any knowledge.
August 1, 1972
The Washington Post reports a check for $25,000 was deposited in the account of one of the burglars. This check was linked to the CRP. In the White House, Nixon tells Haldeman, “…whoever made the decision (to break in) was about as stupid as I ever heard."
August 30, 1972
Nixon announces that White House counsel John Dean has investigated the matter and found no one in the White House was involved.
August 31, 1972
According to a survey, 57% of the respondents have heard about the Watergate break-in. Forty-three percent have not. The majority believe it is “just more politics” rather than “something serious.”
September 15, 1972
The five Watergate burglars are indicted, along with E. Howard Hunt and G. Gordon Liddy. Dean sums up the indictment for the president and Haldeman. “The two former White House people, low level, indicted, one consultant and one member of the Domestic Council staff. That’s not very much of a tie.”
September 29, 1972
The Post reports that, while Attorney General, John Mitchell controlled a covert slush fund used to underwrite activities against Democrats.
October 10, 1972
The Post reports that the FBI has linked the Watergate break-in to the CRP and its broad activities of political spying and sabotage.
November 11, 1972
Nixon is re-elected in a historic landslide, defeating McGovern by more than 20 percentage points and taking every electoral vote except those of Massachusetts and the District of Columbia.
January 8, 1973
Judge Sirica begins the trial of the Watergate burglars.
January 11, 1973
E. Howard Hunt pleads guilty to six counts, stating no “higher-ups” are involved in any conspiracy.
January 15, 1973
The four Cubans, Barker, Gonzalez, Martinez and Sturgis plead guilty.
January 30, 1973
James McCord and G. Gordon Liddy are convicted on eight counts, both having pled innocent. Echoing the sentiments of a shocked, disbelieving president, aide Charles Colson tells Nixon that Judge Sirica is “a hot-headed Italian… [who] has handled himself terribly.”
Senate Hearings, Jan 1973 - July 1973
February 7, 1973Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities is established. Senator Sam Ervin (D-NC) is its chairman.
March 21, 1973
John Dean tells President Nixon, “We have a cancer – within – close to the Presidency, that’s growing.” He tells the president that the burglars are demanding money and that maybe one million dollars would be needed in the end. “We could get that…,” the president replies.
March 23, 1973
Prior to Judge John Sirica imposing sentences on the convicted burglars, James McCord writes a letter to the judge claiming pressure had been applied to the defendants to ensure silence. Perjury was committed in the courtroom. Sirica makes the letter public and imposes harsh sentences, ranging from twenty to forty years, to force the defendants’ cooperation.
April 6, 1973
John Dean begins cooperating with Watergate prosecutors.
April 17, 1973
White House staff will appear before the Senate committee, says Nixon, who promises major new developments. An official White House statement claims Nixon had no prior knowledge of the break-in.
April 22, 1973
Nixon sends Dean to Camp David to write a report about Watergate.
April 30, 1973
Appearing on national television, Nixon announces the dismissal of Dean and the resignations of his closest advisors, Haldeman and Ehrlichman. Attorney General Kleindienst also resigns. Elliot Richardson is appointed to replace him.
May 3, 1973
According to a Louis Harris poll following the resignations of his key assistants, 54% believes the president’s credibility has suffered, rendering him less effective, yet only 42% agree that he “does not inspire confidence personally….” A strong majority believe “his own office was deeply involved in the Watergate affair,” and almost as many (51%) believe his action “has gone a long way toward restoring public confidence in the integrity of the White House.” Most are willing to give the president the benefit of the doubt, believing that Democrats as well as Republicans engage in dirty politics.
May 4, 1973
President Nixon appoints General Alexander Haig to replace Haldeman as White House chief of staff.
May 18, 1973
Having begun its work a day earlier, the Senate Watergate committee now begins televised hearings. Richardson announces former solicitor general Archibald Cox as the Justice Department’s special prosecutor.
June 3, 1973
The Post reports that John Dean has told investigators that he discussed the cover-up with Nixon at least 35 times.
June 13, 1973
Prosecutors find a memo to Ehrlichman containing detailed plans to burglarize the office of Dr. Lewis Fielding, Daniel Ellsberg’s psychiatrist.
June 25, 1973
Dean testifies before the Senate Watergate committee claiming Nixon was involved in the cover-up soon after the break-in and that the White House had conducted political espionage for years.
July 7, 1973
Claiming executive privilege, Nixon refuses to grant the Senate Watergate committee access to presidential documents. He informs Senator Ervin that he will not testify before the committee.
July 16, 1973
Alexander Butterfield, a former aide to the president and one of the few who knew about Nixon's tape recorders, testifies before the Senate committee and says that “there is tape in the Oval Office.” In doing so, he supposed he was confirming what Haldeman had already told the committee. This sets off a legal battle between the White House, special prosecutor’s office, Judge Sirica, and the Watergate committee.
July 18, 1973
Nixon orders an end to secret taping.
Constitutional Battle for the Tapes
July 22, 1973A Louis Harris poll shows 44 percent of participants agreeing that Nixon should resign if it can be proven he ordered a cover-up, with 70 percent rating his handling of the matter as “only fair or poor.” An even 50 percent believe Dean’s charges against the president but split 38 percent to 37 percent over whom they would believe if Nixon denied those charges.
July 23, 1973
The Watergate committee and special prosecutor Cox demand Nixon surrender certain tapes and documents.
July 25, 1973
Nixon refuses to surrender the tapes, claiming executive privilege.
July 26, 1973
The Senate committee subpoenas White House tapes.
August 9, 1973
Nixon refuses to comply and the Senate committee takes legal action.
August 15, 1973
Nixon addresses the nation for a second time concerning Watergate. He explains his claim of executive privilege and why the tapes should not be turned over to the committee. The special prosecutor and the Senate committee ask the Supreme Court to decide the issue.
August 29, 1973
Nixon loses his first court battle when Judge Sirica orders him to hand over nine tapes for private review.
October 10, 1973
Vice President Spiro Agnew resigns amidst allegations of bribery.
October 12, 1973
Nixon nominates Congressman Gerald R. Ford (R-MI) as vice president. The Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia upholds Sirica’s order.
October 19, 1973
Offering a compromise to the Senate Watergate Committee, Nixon proposes that Senator Stennis (D MS) prepare summaries of the subpoenaed tapes.
October 20, 1973
Cox declines this compromise offered by the White House, and is asked by Nixon to resign. Cox refuses. Nixon orders Attorney General Elliot Richardson to fire Cox. Richardson refuses and resigns. Nixon orders Richardson 's assistant, William Ruckelshaus, to fire Cox. He, too, refuses and resigns. Nixon orders his solicitor general, Robert Bork, to fire Cox. Bork does so. The press dubs this extraordinary series of events the "Saturday Night Massacre."
October 22, 1973
Many members of the House of Representatives begin drafting resolutions calling for the impeachment of the president.
October 23, 1973
Feeling the heat, Nixon agrees to surrender some tapes.
November 1, 1973
The Justice Department appoints Leon Jaworski its new special prosecutor.
November 16, 1973
In a Louis Harris poll, 83 percent of respondents have a negative impression of how Nixon has handled the Watergate case. Fifty-nine percent believe he should resign if proven he knew about a cover-up of Watergate. Sixty-five percent agree he should be impeached if the tapes reveal his involvement in Watergate.
November 17, 1973
At a press conference, Nixon urges the nation to move beyond Watergate and defends himself, arguing “I’m not a crook.”
November 21, 1973
The White House reports that two of the subpoenaed tapes are missing and one contains an erased gap of 18 ½ minutes. Nixon’s secretary, Rose Mary Woods, cannot account for what experts conclude are multiple erasures covering that span. Suspicions surface that evidence is being destroyed.
Congressional Impeachment Proceedings and Aftermath
February 6, 1974The House votes to authorize the Judiciary Committee to investigate grounds for impeaching the president.
March 1, 1974
Seven of Nixon’s former staff are indicted by a grand jury for Watergate-related crimes. Nixon is named an “unindicted co-conspirator” by the grand jury.
April 16, 1974
Jaworski subpoenas sixty-four additional tapes.
April 20, 1974
Given what the public knows about Watergate, a Louis Harris poll reveals that 49% believe Nixon should not resign, yet 51% believe he “will be found to have violated the law….” Most believe the president is using executive privilege as an excuse to keep incriminating evidence from Congress.
April 30, 1974
Nixon ignores the subpoena and instead provides edited transcripts, announcing his intention to release a total of 1,200 such pages. The House Judiciary Committee insists on hearing the tapes. The public is shocked by the language in the transcripts, its coarser adjectives masked by the repeated phrase “expletive deleted.”
May 9, 1974
The House Judiciary Committee begins impeachment hearings.
July 24, 1974
The United States v. Richard Nixon: The Supreme Court decides 8-0 that the president must surrender the subpoenaed tapes, denying his claim of executive privilege.
July 27-30, 1974
The House Judiciary Committee adopts 3 articles of impeachment against the president: (Barbara Jordan's remarks were 25 July 1974)
- Obstructing the Watergate investigation (Voted 27-11 on Saturday, 27 July 1974)
- Misuse of power and violating his oath of office (Voted 28-10 on Monday, 29 July 1974)
- Failure to comply with House subpoenas (Voted 21-17 on Tuesday, 30 July 1974)
August 5, 1974Nixon releases transcripts of three conversations between himself and Haldeman held on June 23, 1972, six days after the Watergate break-in. These transcripts become known as the “smoking gun.” They show that Nixon obstructed justice by ordering the FBI to stop its investigation of the break-in. Other transcripts show he directed a cover-up. Republicans on the Judiciary Committee who voted against impeachment announce they will change their vote.
August 7, 1974
Senators Barry Goldwater and Hugh Scott and Representative John Rhodes meet with Nixon and advise him that his prospects on Capitol Hill regarding impeachment look “very bad.”
August 8, 1974
President Nixon announces to the nation in a televised address that he will “resign the Presidency, effective at noon tomorrow.”
August 9, 1974
Nixon delivers a farewell speech to his staff, assembled in the East Room of the White House and departs from the South Lawn by helicopter. At noon, Supreme Court Chief Justice Warren Burger swears in Vice President Ford as President in an East Room ceremony.
August 19, 1974
A Gallup poll shows 56% of those surveyed believe Nixon “should be tried for possible criminal charges arising from Watergate.”
September 8, 1974
In a surprise Sunday morning announcement, President Ford grants a “full free and absolute” pardon to Nixon for “all offenses against the United States” committed between January 20, 1969 and August 9, 1974.
Source: The Watergate Files, Ford Presidential Library